Secure financial report and method of processing and displaying the same

ABSTRACT

A financial report and method for processing and displaying relevant financial information in connection therewith include at least one transaction and abbreviated record relating to the transaction which contains only nonpersonally identifying information. The abbreviated electronic record can be one of a partial view image or an assemblage of textual information relating to the transaction. A hyperlink can also be included or substituted for the image or text. The invention also provides a method of selecting the portion of the abbreviated record that is displayed for the user which includes the division of an underlying document or image into relevant and irrelevant regions for selective inclusion in the report.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a division of co-pending U.S. application Ser. No.11/252,003, filed Oct. 17, 2005.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to processing and displaying financialinformation which may include one or more digital images of a hardcopybank instrument from which certain personal information is excised fromthe viewable image. The partial view digital image of the hardcopy bankinstrument contains only the information necessary to identifyparticular transaction information associated with the hardcopy bankinstrument and is exclusive of any payor personal information. Inaddition, the invention is directed toward a method of automaticallylocating and reproducing the relevant portion of the hardcopy bankinstrument in the form of a digital image. Further, the inventionincludes the ability to process and display one or more partial viewdigital images of each hardcopy bank instrument in conjunction withassociated payment and/or reporting activity in an electronic format,such as on an online banking web site or in other formats, such as atraditional paper activity statement.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The use of electronic banking and record keeping has been increasing andconceivably may be the method by which most banking and other financialtransactions will be conducted in the future. Electronic and onlinebanking presents a user with the technological option of bypassing thetime-consuming, paper-based aspects of traditional banking so thatfinancial accounts may be managed more quickly and efficiently. Forexample, a user may access online banking through a global communicationnetwork to view account balances and account activity of certainfinancial accounts; transfer money between accounts; pay bills; viewimages of cancelled checks and print copies of viewed checks or othertransactions and activity.

One shortcoming of existing online banking methodologies relates to userprivacy and security of both financial and related personal information.In many cases, only one layer of security exists between a user, whetherauthorized or unauthorized, and access to this information. This layerof security is typically in the form of a shared secret. The sharedsecret is a common security method for accessing financial or personaluser information, which may be confidential and forms an integral partof user authentication in the current online environment. The sharedsecret usually consists of a word or group of words, numeric data orsome random combination of letters and numerals that are exchangedbetween and known to both the user and the holder of the financial orpersonal user information. When the user provides the shared secret datathat matches the data previously exchanged between the parties, the useris granted access to the information.

There are several forms of shared secrets that may be utilized in anycombination. For example, the most common type of shared secret is auser identifier and password. Challenge questions are another type ofshared secret often used to provide a greater level of confidence ofuser authentication because the challenge questions are directed towardsomewhat more personal data. For example, when the user logs into anonline banking web site, the financial institution may display, to theuser, at least one of a group of preselected challenge questions forwhich the user has previously provided an answer. The user must providethe appropriate answer to access the online banking web site and userinformation. Shared secrets serve as a barrier to access and shouldnever be disclosed by the user. However, there are multiple ways topurloin shared secret data regardless of whether such data has beendisclosed by the user.

For example, e-mail phishing is one of the fastest growing methods offraudulently acquiring sensitive access information. Phishing is a termused to describe the action of assuming the identity of a legitimateorganization, or web site, such as through the use of email or a webpage, with the objective of convincing a user to innocently share usernames, passwords and financial or personal information. The informationprovided by the unwary user is often used to commit crimes, such asfraud and identity theft.

To gain a user's trust and information, a potential wrongdoerelectronically poses as a financial institution or other legitimatecompany. The wrongdoer sends an e-mail to the user that is formatted toappear as legitimate correspondence from an institution with which theuser may have an account. The e-mail may contain a reproduced logo orother indicia of legitimacy copied from a web site of an organization orcorporation, which is intended to deceive the user. The e-mail typicallyrequests that the user update certain personal information online suchas financial data and financial account numbers, account usernames,credit card numbers, passwords, social security numbers or other similarinformation that a legitimate organization or corporation is likely tohave regarding that user. The wrongdoer informs the user that theinformation can be updated by visiting a particular website, for which alink is typically included in the email. The link directs the user to acounterfeit website designed to trick the user into divulging thepersonal information.

Many financial institutions prefer to supplement shared secrets withadditional security measures in order to gain access to sensitiveinformation. One method utilized to provide assurances against phishingpractices is the use of a digital image in conjunction with anassociated phrase during user log in. Specifically, the user chooses aparticular image from a range of graphical files provided by thefinancial institution. The user adds a personalized phrase to beassociated with the selected image. Only the user and the financialinstitution know which image and particular phrase have been selected.When the user logs in to the financial institution website, the secretimage and associated personalized phrase are displayed to the user.Therefore, the image and phrase function as a type of reverse passwordto assure the user that the site is the legitimate site of the financialinstitution.

Some financial institutions have added a physical object as a barrier toaccess, which serves the purpose of a key. One example of a physicalobject is a security token that is utilized to prevent access by anunauthorized user. An example of this is the RSA SecurID Authenticator,which is a security token manufactured by RSA Security, Inc. of Bedford,Mass. The security token functions like an ATM card as the user must beidentified by both something that the user knows and something that theuser has before access is granted. Security tokens are currently used tosecurely access virtual private networks and other remote accessapplications, web servers and applications and network operatingsystems. Security tokens have been utilized recently in otherapplications, including online banking applications.

To use a security token, a user is provided with a personal device whichdisplays a code number. The device is synchronized to a server and basedon logic, time and other parameters, the server can recognize whethernumbers entered by a user, as displayed on the personal device, matchthe corresponding register of the server. Specifically, the user readsan ever-changing number on the screen of a device and types the number,as requested, during log in. A server at the financial institutionmaintains a separate, synchronized register which corresponds to thenumber displayed on the personal device. When the user enters theappropriate number, the server validates the user. The user thereforerequires a password plus a physical object to gain access to an account.An unauthorized user would have to obtain the token, as well as the login credentials of the user, to access any financial and personal userinformation.

Each of the above described methods of protecting financial and personaluser information are useful to keep unauthorized individuals fromgaining access to this information through improper means at the initialpoint of access. However, once the correct log in credentials areobtained and access is granted, the financial and personal userinformation may be freely accessible by anyone. It should be noted thatan unauthorized user does not necessarily need to obtain the appropriatelog in credentials to access the user's retained information.

For example, such unauthorized access may be obtained through the cacheof an Internet browser program. The browser cache contains temporaryfiles, similar to a travel record, of the items a user has seen, heardor downloaded from the Internet, including images, sounds, web pages andcookies. A computer requires less time to display a web page when someof the elements of the page or even the entire page can be called upfrom the local temporary Internet folder. Thus, storing these files inthe browser cache enables more efficient Internet browsing. Caching isnot limited to entire web pages but can also include user names,passwords, financial and other sensitive information that may have beenentered by the user on a web page.

Typically, a computer terminal with multiple users or a public computerterminal, such as one located in a library, hotel or other public place,is accessible to almost anyone. Most often, browser settings are usuallynot set to automatically delete temporarily stored information.Consequently, public computers are not a safe place to view certainfinancial and personal user information. Clearing the browser cacheensures that any individual engaged in a subsequent browser session orotherwise having access to the same computer terminal, particularly on apublic computer terminal, will not have access to this information.

Some financial institutions utilize a session cookie to preventsubsequent users from viewing online banking web pages previously viewedby another user. However, a session cookie only protects the user whohas logged off from the online banking session. A user may leave acomputer terminal unattended while logged into an online banking website for a number of reasons, including carelessness. In such asituation, any person gaining access to the computer has access to thesame information as the authorized user.

After the unauthorized user gains access to financial and personal userinformation, there are a number of ways the victim can be defrauded. Theunauthorized user can utilize the bank's online bill-paying function, anincreasingly popular and heavily marketed feature, to have checks madeout to himself or to pay his own bills. In an account with wiretransfers enabled, the unauthorized user could transfer money to anotheraccount, often one in an overseas bank.

Many online banking web sites incorporate access to full digital imagesof hardcopy bank instruments into account activity reports or otherelectronic statements. Prior art embodiments reproduce a full viewdigital image of an online banking user's canceled checks which includeall of the financial and personal information printed on the face of thecheck, such as the user's name, address and account number. Otherinformation handwritten on the face of the check may include a telephonenumber, social security number or credit card account number, asrequired by the payee. The unauthorized user can view an image of acanceled check online and then use the check image to create a forgedcheck or misappropriate the information on the face of the check forimproper purposes. With regard to privacy and security of financial andpersonal user information, it is therefore desirable to reduce theamount of personalized information that is part of an electronictransmission associated with online banking, even with appropriateaccount protections in place.

Systems which specifically include the use of such images include, forexample, Blossman, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,721,783, issued Apr. 13,2004, which discloses an e-mail controller that delivers monthly accountactivity statements and notices through communication and other e-mailnetworks as an alternative to printing paper account activitystatements. The emailed statements include at least one of a full frontview and back view image of each processed hardcopy bank instruments,such as deposit slips or canceled checks. The e-mail controllercomprises an electronic formatted statement shell in which lists oftransactions associated with a user account can be inserted. Further, animage link is provided in the statement shell that defines an electronicpath from a listed transaction to at least one full view image of ahardcopy bank instrument. The file associated with each image link isstored in an appropriate database. The hardcopy bank instruments may beserial numbered, such as a check, although non-serial numbered bankinstruments may also be included. Non-serial numbered bank instrumentsinclude NSF notices, deposit correction notices and account sweeptransaction notices.

A digital image of each hardcopy bank instrument can be created using atypical proof-of-deposit imaging system which includes an image databasefile, an imaging device and software and a checkclearing/proof-of-deposit subsystem. The imaging device, in conjunctionwith imaging software, is used to scan a full front view and back viewof each hardcopy bank instrument and create at least one digital imageof the instrument. Each view is typically a separate digital image. Eachhardcopy bank instrument and corresponding image or images are sortedaccording to accounts held at the particular financial institutionperforming the imaging and accounts held at other institutions. The bankinstrument information is electronically coded, if appropriate, in adatabase record linked to the corresponding images. This informationincludes the dollar value of the paper check or hardcopy bank instrumentand other information necessary to post the transaction, such as aserial number, a sequence number or bank account number.

The user can pre-establish preferences with respect to the statementsthat include the manner by which the user prefers the digital images tobe presented. For example, the user can set a minimum dollar value forthe inclusion of certain images with respect to both serial numbered andnon-serial numbered hardcopy bank instruments. The user may also chooseto receive front views only of hardcopy bank instruments, back viewsonly of hardcopy bank instruments or both front and back views ofhardcopy bank instruments. Accordingly, there are two image links foreach hardcopy bank instrument that may be included in the electronicstatement shell. The first image link defines the electronic path to thefront view of the hardcopy bank instrument and the second image linkdefines the electronic path to the back view. Only the image linksdefining the path to digital images that meet the user's preferences areincluded in the emailed statements.

The hardcopy bank instrument images created in Blossman are full frontview and back view images. Each image link inserted into the electronicstatement shell represents an image link corresponding to a full viewimage of at least one side of the bank instrument. When the user setspreferences regarding the selection of hardcopy instrument images to bereceived with the electronic statement, the user's choices are limitedto one or both of the full front and back view images. The user mustaccept a full view image of at least one side of a selected hardcopyinstrument, and the full view image contains all of the user's financialand personal information. This limitation of choice can be problematicwith respect to receipt of the electronic statement and correspondingimages by e-mail. Specifically, the use of a web-based e-mail presentsthe same issues with respect to the browser cache, as described above.Blossman's transmission of hardcopy bank instruments containing all ofthe user's information enables an unauthorized viewer to misappropriatesuch information.

Fu, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,754,697, for Selective Document Image DataCompression Technique, issued May 15, 1995, relates to a document imagedata compression technique and, specifically, the selection andcompression of certain essential information apart from the backgroundinformation in a document. Fu discusses the obligation of financialinstitutions to retain certain types of financial information, includingchecking account information, for a period of seven years. Typically, afinancial institution provides cancelled checks to account holders on aregular periodic basis. If the financial institution chooses to retainthe physical check, the information must be stored. Storage of suchinformation in a digital format is much more preferable than in ahardcopy or micro-film format due to the physical space requirements ofthe documents.

Digital images still require a large amount of disk space to store and alarge amount of bandwidth to transmit. A digital image with increasedresolution consumes a considerable amount of diskspace. Althoughcompression techniques have evolved, issues still exist with respect toimage quality. Thus, the imaging technique utilized must be sensitiveenough to enable accurate detection and depiction of the relevanttransaction information, including the signature on the check, theamount and the payee name.

Fu provides a method of creating an image of a hardcopy bank instrumenthaving certain information extracted from the background. The image iscreated through a process that involves contrast enhancement; conversionto a two-color format and compression of the resulting data. Fudiscloses that it is only necessary to store a portion of theinformation of a document in a digitized image. Therefore, thenon-essential or background information can be eliminated before theimage is compressed and stored or transmitted.

For example, bank checks include different types of informationincluding colored check designs, the account information of the userprinted along the bottom of the check, the financial institutionidentification information and other data that is entered by the payor.The background information is defined by Fu as the design pattern andartwork on the printing stock upon which the financial institution anduser information is printed. The background information does not includeany information that would identify the payee, the payor or thefinancial institution. This identifying information remains as part ofthe digital image that is created from the method disclosed by Fu.

Fu provides an image of a hardcopy bank instrument from which certaininformation has been eliminated. However, this information is limited tobackground information consisting of mainly printed check designs,artwork and color. The object of Fu is to create a two-color black andwhite image in the interest of minimizing file size for storage andexchange. In creating this compressed image, Fu maintains all of thefinancial and personal identifying information within the image so thatuser account and transaction information can still be identified fromthe resulting image.

Prakash, United States Patent Publication No. US 2005/0036680, publishedon Feb. 17, 2005, discloses a System and Method for Segmenting anElectronic Image. Prakash discloses that many financial institutions areseeking to store and process more hardcopy bank instruments in the formof electronic images. However, these files are typically large and thecreation of such images involves sophisticated techniques and equipment.Further, a bank may want to identify and store only specific textual orwritten areas from the foreground of a check image such as dollaramounts, signatures, and payees, while eliminating any necessarybackground information, such as a check design or other artwork.

Prakash discloses the conversion of a hardcopy bank instrument into acompressed image, such as a JPEG image. Next the compressed image issegmented into blocks, with a typical bank check comprisingapproximately 5,967 blocks. Each segment of the compressed image isanalyzed and assigned an appropriate frequency coefficient. For example,if the image is a JPEG image, the proper coefficient is a DiscreteCosine Transform, or DCT, coefficient value which represents the averagevideo value of the block. Once the coefficient value is computed foreach block, the sums are examined and used to distinguish betweenforeground segments and background segments. The identified foregroundsegments that contain the desired information will be stored, outputtedor processed, as needed. The resulting image of Prakash is based on theelimination of certain background data. However, similar to Fu, thebackground data that is eliminated comprises only data such as a checkdesign or artwork. Thus, any data that may identify the payor, the payeeor the financial institution is maintained as part of the image.

What is lacking in the art is a method of providing sufficient graphicalor other financial data from a hardcopy bank instrument sufficient toenable the user to extract useful transaction information. The image orother data is carefully edited, however, to exclude or otherwise markany particular personal information which might enable a third party toutilize such data for improper purposes.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A financial report and a method for processing and displaying relevantfinancial information is disclosed which includes an abbreviatedelectronic record of or relating to a hardcopy bank document ortransactional information. The methodology is preferably employed duringthe processing of a document to extract certain information from theoriginal document. The abbreviated electronic record may be in the formof a partial view digital image or an assemblage of textual informationrelating to a particular transaction. This information is ultimatelyincluded in a financial report, as will be described further herein.

The report and method are preferably directed to the creation of anabbreviated electronic record in the form of a partial view image thatmay be created from either a paper copy of the bank instrument or apreviously created full view digital image. A digital image of thedocument is reproduced from which certain portions likely to containpersonally identifying information, such as preprinted informationregarding the payor or the payor's financial institution, or similarlyidentifying handwritten information, have been excised from the viewableimage. The resulting image is a partial view image that contains onlycertain preselected identifying information relating to the transactionwhich enables the user to identify the transaction or document. Theinformation remaining is also not useful for any third party. In certaincircumstances, this partial view image may be substituted by a textualsummary. This assemblage of textual information may be determined frommetadata that is coded during the processing of the hardcopy bankdocument.

The financial report may further substitute the image and/or text with asimple hyperlink that directs a user to a separate display of a partialview digital image upon its selection.

In the case of a bank instrument, such as a check, the partial imagepreferably contains only that information sufficient to identify theassociated transaction to the account holder. In a preferred embodiment,hardcopy bank instruments from which partial view images may be createdinclude deposit slips, withdrawal slips and NSF notices. Specifically,if the hardcopy bank instrument is a check, as illustrated in thepreferred embodiment, the payee name and amount of the check may bedisplayed for the viewer in the absence of the payer's personallyidentifying information from the front of the same check.

The disclosed method may also be directed toward the selection of theportion of the abbreviated electronic record that is to be displayed. Apartial view image may be created using well-known imaging devices andassociated software from a full view image by dividing the full viewimage into a series of sections or regions to determine the location ofcertain reference points and boundaries which define the partial viewimage of the hardcopy bank instrument. The image format of the full viewand partial view images may be JPEG, PDF, TIFF, GIF, PNG or any otherknown electronic format suitable for the reproduction of such images. Ifthe relevant portion of the full view image cannot be located from thedescribed methodology to create the partial view image of the hardcopybank instrument, an error handling process may be invoked that is usedto extract an approximation of the relevant portion. The partial viewimage of the hardcopy bank instrument may be saved and stored in anappropriate database record and associated with other filescorresponding to a full view image of the same hardcopy bank instrumentand certain coded metadata.

The partial view image may also be stored in a database for fastretrieval upon request of the user or the financial institution. Suchrequest may be in the form of an online account activity report or otherelectronic statement. When the user requests account activity for acertain period of time, the partial view image of the bank instrumentmay be presented in connection with a particular associated transaction,being directly viewed, accessible by hyperlink or the like. The partialview image may be a static image or it may have additional features. Theuser may select the partial view image for a full view image of at leastone side of the hardcopy bank instrument. The user may also request apartial view image of a hardcopy bank instrument in connection with theuse of budgeting or reconciliation software. The partial view image mayalso be incorporated into periodic paper account statements.

These and other advantages and features of the present invention will bemore fully understood upon reference to the presently preferredembodiments thereof and to the appended drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the methodology for creating a digitalimage of a hardcopy bank instrument according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic representation of a typical bank check.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the data extraction methodology forcreating a digital image of a partial view of a hardcopy bank instrumentaccording to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram representing the line detection algorithmutilized in the data extraction process according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic representation of account activity reportincluding partial digital images.

FIG. 6 is a representation of a digital image of each of the full frontand back view of a payor check displayed in connection with the accountactivity report displayed on an online banking web site.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the creation of a digital imageof a partial view of a hardcopy bank instrument from either the actualhardcopy bank instrument or a full view digital image of at least one ofthe front view or the back view of the hardcopy bank instrument. Thefull view digital image from which a partial view digital image iscreated is a typical image that can be exchanged electronically byfinancial institutions, printed for account activity purposes ordisplayed on online banking websites.

Certain legislation has been recently enacted regarding the processingof paper checks that permits financial institutions to exchange digitalimages of hardcopy bank instruments as the equivalent of the same.Although the legislation does not mandate the use of such images,digitalization is encouraged to reduce paper and permit financialinstitutions to easily automate the payment clearing and checkcollection process. Accordingly, a full view digital image of a hardcopybank instrument may be created at any point in the collection process.The digital image may be created by any collecting financial institutioninvolved in the processing of the bank instrument or the financialinstitution of the user upon which the bank instrument is drawn. Suchfinancial institutions may include any national or state financialinstitution, federal or state savings financial institution, creditunion or savings association.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, at step 10 the user issues a hardcopy bankinstrument, such as a check 135, to a payee that is drawn on the user'sfinancial institution, which is also referred to as the payor bank. FIG.2 is a representation of the face of a typical check 135 which isaddressed to a payee. Check 135 includes personalization text 140 whichmay have up to five lines available for the personalization of check135. The information typically listed in personalization text 140 ofcheck 135 includes a payor name and address in addition to otheroptional information that the payor may choose to include such as atelephone number, a driver's license number or a social security number.Cut 141 is located to the left of personalization text 140 and mayinclude an optional cut, such as a decorative image, or a monogram, ifthe design of check 135 permits.

Check number 142 includes the sequential number of check 135 and appearsin both the upper right corner of check 135 and in MICR line 170 at thebottom of check 135, as further described below. Check number 142 servesthe purpose of a tracking number so that the payor can track either aspecific check or the number of checks that have been issued. Date 145is typically the date that the payor presents check 135 as a form ofpayment to the payee, although check 135 may have a date that is not thecurrent date. Payee line 147 represents the area where the payoridentifies the individual or business to which the check is written.Dollar box 150 is the area where the numeric amount of the check iswritten in Arabic numerals. The numeric dollar amount is written in texton amount line 152 which is typically located below payee line 147 oncheck 135. Padlock icon 157 references security features that areincluded on check 135 to aid a bank in identifying check fraud. Thesecurity features are usually described on the back of check 135.

Financial institution information 155 includes the identifyinginformation regarding the financial institution where the payor holds anaccount associated with check 135. Financial institution information 155must include at least the financial institution name, although otherinformation, such as the address of the financial institution, may beincluded if the design of check 135 permits, or if required by thefinancial institution.

Memo 160 is an area provided on check 135 where the payor can writepersonal information that may assist the payee in associating check 135with a particular customer account, for example, if the payee is amerchant. Such payor-provided information of memo 160 may include anaccount number, a driver's license number, a credit card account number,a social security number or a telephone number. The payor may alsochoose to include information in memo 160 of check 135 that will assistwith later identification and association of check 135 with a particulartransaction for the purpose of the personal bookkeeping of the payor.

The payor endorses signature line 165 to authorize the processing ofcheck 135 by the payee. MICR line 170 is the area that contains certainidentifying information, in numeric format, to facilitate the automatedprocessing of check 135. MICR line 170 consists of several fields ofnumbers printed in magnetic ink near the bottom of the front of thecheck. These numbers include routing number 166, which identifies thebank on which the check is drawn; account number 167, which identifiesthe account of the payor from which the funds are to be withdrawn andcheck number 142. However, other information may be included in MICRline 170, if required by the financial institution.

Certain information that can be printed or handwritten on check 135includes personally identifying information that may be used for animproper purpose. For example, by knowing routing number 166 and accountnumber 167, an unauthorized viewer can cause a money transfer from theaccount of the user. More importantly, if the user has handwritten anypersonal or other identifying information in memo 160, such as a socialsecurity number, this identifying information, when used in connectionwith the information contained in personalization text 140, may subjectthe user to a risk of identity theft. Similarly, the informationindicated by financial institution information 155 and signature line165, when either is used in combination with other personallyidentifying information of check 135, can also provide an unauthorizedviewer with an advantage. Many of the purposes served by online bankingdo not require access to a full view image of the relevant hardcopy bankinstrument. The most common need for the entire canceled check is in therare case of fraud. An online banking user typically requires access toonly that partial view of an image of check 135 that provides the payeeinformation necessary to identify the transaction. Any questionregarding the validity of check 135, in most cases, can be resolved byseparately requesting a full copy of check 135 from the user's financialinstitution.

In the prior art embodiments of an online banking web site that displaysaccount activity in conjunction with imaged hardcopy bank instruments,at least a full front view image of check 135 representing eachparticular element of check 135, as described, is typically presented tothe user. The present method is directed to the creation of anabbreviated record of check 135, as further described with respect toFIGS. 3, 4 and 5. The abbreviated record may be in the form of a partialview image of a hardcopy bank instrument or an assemblage of textualinformation that relates to the same. The abbreviated record isdisplayed in connection with a user's account activity reports orelectronic statements on an online banking web site. It is noted thatalthough the method is directed to the creation of an abbreviated recordin the form of a partial view image of check 135, abbreviated recordscan be created of many other hardcopy bank instruments, including butnot limited to deposit slips, withdrawal slips and NSF notices.

Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 2, the payee deposits a hardcopy check135 at step 20 at the payee's financial institution, also referred to asthe depository bank. Check 135 is processed at step 30 which includesthe crediting of the payee account for the amount of check 135. Theamount of check 135 corresponding to the numeric amount in dollar box150 is then encoded in the lower right hand corner of the face of check135 along MICR line 170. After the amount of check 135 is encoded, eachcheck 135 is sorted automatically based on routing number 166 containedwithin MICR line 170 and transported to the proper payor bank. When thepayor bank receives check 135 from the depository bank or otherfinancial institution in the collection process, the payor bank providesthe appropriate credit to each financial institution in the chain ofcollection.

Next, an imaging device, equipped with the appropriate imaging software,is used to capture a full view image of both the front and back of check135 at step 105. The full view image of check 135 is created through theuse of well-known imaging devices of the type typically used to createelectronic copies of hardcopy bank instruments. The imaging software hasan associated database, such as an image database, in which each imagethat is created can be saved to a database record and stored forretrieval. Each full view image of the front view and back view of check135 is a digital image that may be saved in a variety of formats, asfurther described with respect to FIG. 3.

The check also may have been imaged by another financial institution inthe collection process. For example, at step 40 the check may have beenimaged by the depository bank. The check created at step 40 is anelectronic reproduction of the original hardcopy check in digitalformat. Specifically, this reproduction must contain images of both thefront and back view of the original hardcopy check. MICR line 170 mustbe fully visible so that associated automated processes are not affectedand the check image is suitable for such automatic processing in thesame manner as the hardcopy check.

Regardless of whether the full view image of the hardcopy instrument iscreated by the depository bank or the payor bank, certain metadataassociated with check 135 must be coded at step 110 to the appropriatedatabase record of a database that may also contain full view images.The metadata, which can be coded at any time before the creation of thepartial view digital image of check 135, includes information such asthe date on which check 135 was processed, check number 142, accountnumber 167, an amount, a payee and the sequence number of thetransaction. The metadata must be coded to the appropriate databaserecord either associated with or containing the full view image orimages of check 135 that is further associated with any related partialview image of check 135. The metadata must be coded so that the fullfront view and back view images of check 135, in addition to the partialview image of check 135 are searchable by the online banking user. Themetadata and partial view digital images, in connection with specifictransaction data for most or all of a user's transaction, are used tocreate a transaction list for account activity reports or electronicstatements, as further described with respect to FIG. 5.

To create a partial view digital image of check 135, a full view imageof one view of check 135 and the associated metadata are read from theparticular database record at step 115. A partial view digital image ofat least one full view image, preferably the front view, of the storedcheck image is created at step 120, as further described with respect toFIG. 3. Once the partial image of the full front view of the check imageis created, the partial view image is stored at step 125 in associationwith the full front and back view images of check 135 and its associatedmetadata.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, a partial image of check 135 can be createdat any time after receipt by the payor's financial institution of check135 at step 30 or full view image of check 135 at step 50. The partialview image of check 135 is preferably created from a full front viewimage of check 135. If at least one full view image of check 135 is notcreated by any collecting bank during the payment collection process ofcheck 135, the image must be created by the payor's financialinstitution. The image format of the full view image may be a JPEG, PDF,TIFF, GIF, PNG or any other known electronic format suitable for thereproduction of such images. The full view image format is preferably aone bit, two color black and white image to enable the creation of apartial view image with this method, however the image may be a grayscale or other color image.

To create the partial view image of check 135, the imaging software isinitialized and a full front view image of check 135 is obtained at step105, if such full view image is not received at step 50. Once themetadata is coded to the database record associated with or containingthe full view image or images of check 135, the full view image orimages and metadata are read from the database file. Referring to FIG.3, the imaging software automatically calculates certain preliminarymeasurements from the full front view image at step 195 that are used infurther calculations performed in subsequent steps. Such certainpreliminary measurements may include the height and the width of thefull view image of check 135.

At step 200, two points on the full view image are located thatcorrespond to the vertical trisection of the full view image of check135 into three horizontal sections. The first point is the originationpoint for the creation of the partial view image and the second point isthe terminus point for the creation of the partial view image, asfurther explained below. A right-handed Cartesian coordinate system isutilized to calculate the location of the origination point and terminuspoint and the location of both the first horizontal line and the secondhorizontal line, as described below. The Cartesian coordinate system isthe industry standard for working with digital image data. To locate thetwo points, the full front view image of check 135 is divided into sixequal sections. Specifically, the full front view image of check 135 isdivided into one-third sections horizontally from the top to the bottomof the image. Next, the full front view image of check 135 is dividedinto one-half sections vertically from the left side to the right sideof the image. The two points are located on the dividing line betweenthe one-half vertical sections with the first point located on the lowerboundary of the first one-third horizontal section and the second pointlocated on the lower boundary of the second one-third horizontalsection.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, at step 205, starting at the originationpoint which is the point closest to the top of the image, the full frontview image is scanned along a line extending vertically downward inpreferably one-pixel increments from this point until a first horizontalline is located. Alternatively, such scanning may continue until theterminus point is reached at which time an error handling procedure isinvoked at step 255 if a horizontal line is not detected, as furtherdescribed below.

The first horizontal line that is located is typically payee line 147 ofcheck 135. If a horizontal line is detected at step 210, the imagingsoftware continues to scan from this horizontal line along the lineextending vertically downward from the origination point until a secondhorizontal line is located at step 215. Again, the vertical distance isscanned in one-pixel increments and such scanning may continue until theterminus point is reached at which time the error handling procedure atstep 255 is invoked if a second horizontal line does not exist, asfurther described below. The first and second horizontal lines aredetected through the use of a line detection algorithm 220, asrepresented by the block diagram of FIG. 4. At steps 205 and 215, linedetection algorithm 220 is employed to locate the first and secondhorizontal lines which are used to determine the boundaries of thepartial view image of check 135, as further described in subsequentsteps.

Referring to FIG. 4, the location of a reference point, which ispreferably the origination point, on a scanned, monochrome digital imageis located at step 300, as previously described in FIG. 3 with respectto step 200. At step 305, the full front view image of check 135 isscanned horizontally for a preselected distance from the originationpoint. This distance is approximately twenty-five pixels in eitherdirection horizontally from the location of the origination point. Theimage is scanned vertically downward from the given point along adistance of the vertical line, as described with respect to FIG. 3. Atone-pixel increments, the imaging software attempts to detect a changeor contrast of the pixel color of the image to a color other than whiteat step 310. If the color of the pixel at a particular increment iswhite at step 320, a line has not been detected. If the color of thepixel at the particular increment is not white at step 315, a line hasbeen detected. With respect to the first horizontal line located at step205 of FIG. 3, this line should be payee line 147 of check 135.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, at step 215 the second horizontal line islocated utilizing line detection algorithm 220. Once the firsthorizontal line is located, this line becomes the reference point atstep 300. Again, the full image view is scanned horizontally a distanceof approximately twenty-five pixels in both left and right directionsfrom the location of the reference point. The image is scannedvertically downward from the reference point along a distance of thevertical line, as described with respect to FIG. 3. At preferablyone-pixel increments, the imaging software attempts to detect a changeor contrast in the pixel color of the image to a color other than whiteat step 310. If the color of the pixel at a particular increment iswhite at step 320, a line has not been detected. If the color of thepixel at the particular increment is not white at step 315, a line hasbeen detected. The second horizontal line located at step 215 of FIG. 3should be amount line 152 of check 135.

If both horizontal lines exist at steps 205 and 215, the distance ofeach line from the top edge of check 135 is calculated at step 230 bythe imaging software. The calculated distances of each horizontal linefrom the top edge of check 135 are subtracted from each other at step235. Based on the height of check 135, as previously determined at step195, the result obtained at step 235 is compared to the amount equal toone-twelfth the height of check 135. If the difference between thecalculated distances is greater than one-twelfth of the height of check135, at step 240 the second, or lower, horizontal line becomes thehorizontal line from which all subsequent steps are taken. If thedifference between the calculated distances is less than one-twelfth ofthe height of check 135, at step 245 the first, or higher, horizontalline becomes the horizontal line from which all subsequent steps aretaken. Based on the horizontal line selected at either step 240 or step245, a point below this line is located at step 250. The point shouldpreferably be approximately five pixels below the selected horizontalline.

At step 260, using the right-handed Cartesian coordinate system, thelocation of the point located at step 250 is analyzed to determine ifthe point is in the middle one-third of check 135. If the point is inthe middle one-third of the check, at step 265 a section of the check isextracted as the partial view image of check 135. The lower boundary ofpartial view image is the horizontal line that intersects the pointselected at step 260 and the upper boundary is located at a distanceabove lower boundary equal to one-eighth the height of check 135. Fromthis extracted section, the left ten percent and the right three percentare automatically cropped and removed at step 270. At step 273, theimaging software automatically resizes the extracted section to theappropriate dimensions. The extracted section is saved at step 275 asthe partial view image of check 135 and the cropped portions aredeleted. The image can be saved in any format as a one-bit, two-colorblack and white image, as previously described.

The resulting partial view image of check 135 contains the informationnecessary to identify the transaction and does not include any financialor identifying personal user information. Specifically, the partial viewimage of check 135 contains payee line 147 and dollar box 152. Thepartial view image of check 135 does not contain any information thatmay have been handwritten in memo 160, the numerical identifyinginformation of MICR line 170 financial institution information 155,signature line 165, or the payor name and address contained withinpersonalization text 140.

The size of a standard bank check may vary greatly between financialinstitutions. Further, the payor has a wide range of sources other thanthe payor's financial institution from which a selection of checks maybe obtained. Most hardcopy checks, and those images created from suchchecks, should conform to the methodology described in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4to produce a partial view image of check 135. However, there may beinstances of nonconformity, indicated by the nonexistence of a firsthorizontal line at step 210; the nonexistence of a second horizontalline at step 225; an intersection with the terminus point if neitherhorizontal line exists, or if the point selected at step 250 isdetermined not to be located in the middle one-third section of thecheck. In any such instance, the middle one-third section of the imageof check 135 is extracted and stored in the appropriate database recordas the partial view image of check 135 at step 275.

Referring to FIG. 5, abbreviated electronic records can be incorporatedinto the generation of online account activity reports or electronicstatements. A financial institution may have as many databases asrequired to enable the generation of such activity reports orstatements, including image databases that contain images of documentsrelevant to each user's account and financial information databases thatcontain information relevant to each user's specific transactions. Forexample, most transaction data is coded in an appropriate databaserecord according to at least the user's account number and the sequencenumber of the transaction. Similarly, each partial view digital imageand full view digital image of check 135, or other hardcopy bankinstrument, is stored in an appropriate database record according tocoded metadata that can include the user's account number, documentnumber, processing date, payee, if any, amount and sequence number, aspreviously described with respect to FIG. 1. When a user requests anaccount activity report or an electronic statement with respect to theuser's particular account, each relevant database is automaticallyqueried with respect to the particular searchable coded data ormetadata. The query results are presented on the screen for the userwith each transaction being merged with an associated abbreviatedelectronic record, if such image has been created.

FIG. 5 is a representation of an online account activity report 400 thatis typical with respect to most online banking web sites. Online accountactivity report 400 contains an account summary 405 which providescertain information such as account number, the current balance, theavailable balance and date from which activity is available. Atransaction history 415 for selected dates may be presented, ortransaction history may start with the latest or the earliesttransaction and proceed in the appropriate direction. Transactionhistory 415 usually includes transactions of all types, such as apoint-of-sale transaction 417, an ATM transaction 418 and a checktransaction 425. Check transactions 425 a-c include check number 142 andany other transactional data, as coded by the bank. Check transactions425 a-c are further represented in the various formats of an abbreviatedelectronic record. Each abbreviated electronic record of check 135includes the named payee of payee line 147 and the dollar amountindicated by dollar box 150 of check 135 represented in FIG. 2, asextracted during the extraction process described in FIG. 3. Forexample, abbreviated electronic record of check transaction 425 aincludes a partial view image 440 of check 135 presented in connectionwith the particular associated transaction. Alternatively, theabbreviated electronic record of check transaction 425 c is representedas an assemblage of textual information 430. Abbreviated electronicrecord 425 b is represented as an assemblage of textual material inassociation with a hyperlink 435 directing a user to a separate displayof partial view digital image 440 upon selection of the hyperlink. It isto be specifically noted that a new hyperlink may also be presented, notin association with any particular text or other information. Thishyperlink would thus provide access to the image containing the relevanttransaction information.

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, partial view image 430 of check 135 may be astatic image within the online account activity report 400, or partialview image 430 of check 135 may have additional features. Referring toFIG. 6, within online account activity report 400 the user can selectpartial view image 430 of check 135, to view a full front view image 450and back view image 460 of check 135. The partial view image 430 islinked to the full front view image 450 and back view image 460 whichare also stored in the appropriate database record. A financialinstitution may choose not to provide this feature. Alternatively, if auser chooses to view the full front view image 450 and back view image460 of check 135, the financial institution may require the user toexecute an opt-out provision pertaining to a disclaimer of privacy andsecurity of the user's personal identifying information. In thisinstance, all of the user's personal information that is excised fromthe partial view image 430 of check 135 is now displayed for the user oranyone else presenting themselves as the user.

The present method can also be applied to the creation of an abbreviatedelectronic record of other types of standard documentation evidencingaccount transactions for insertion into an online account activityreport or electronic statement in an online banking program, or othersimilar application. The partial images may also be incorporated intorequests associated with budgeting software and reconciliation softwareand also monthly paper bank statements.

While the present preferred embodiment of the invention is described, itis to be distinctly understood that the invention is not limitedthereto, but may be otherwise embodied and practiced with the scope ofthe following claims.

1. A method of locating and selecting a portion of a digital image to beexcised from said image comprising: utilizing an imaging device having aprocessor associated therein to create said digital image; utilizingsaid processor to determine a location of at least two reference pointswithin said digital image; utilizing said processor to select at leastone of said reference points; utilizing said processor to scan saiddigital image in a preselected direction between said selected referencepoints to detect at least one horizontal line; utilizing said processorto locate a lower boundary point below said detected horizontal line;utilizing said processor to identify an excise region of the digitalimage bounded by a lower horizontal boundary which intersects said lowerboundary point, an upper horizontal boundary which is located at apreselected distance above said lower horizontal boundary and thehorizontal dimensions of the digital image; utilizing said processor toexcise said excise region from said digital image.
 2. A method oflocating and selecting a portion of a digital image of claim 1, whereinsaid location of said two reference points is determined by utilizingsaid processor to section said digital image into regions bounded byintersecting lines, the reference points being isolated at theintersection of said intersecting lines.
 3. A method of locating andselecting a portion of a digital image of claim 1, wherein said firstreference points is an origination point and said second reference pointis a terminus point.
 4. A method of locating and selecting a portion ofa digital image of claim 3, wherein said digital image is scannedvertically downward between said reference points.
 5. A method oflocating and selecting a portion of a digital image of claim 1, whereinsaid digital image is scanned in one pixel increments.
 6. A method oflocating and selecting a portion of a digital image of claim 5, whereinsaid scanning further comprises the steps of: (i) originating said scanat said selected reference point; (ii) utilizing said processor to scanhorizontally a preselected distance from said reference point; (iii)utilizing said processor to detect a contrast in pixel color of saiddigital image; and (iv) utilizing said processor to select a nextreference point displaced vertically from said previous reference pointand repeating said horizontal scanning until a horizontal line isdetected.
 7. A method of locating and selecting a portion of a digitalimage of claim 6, wherein said digital image is scanned forapproximately 25 pixels horizontally in at least one direction from atleast one of said reference point.